Tampa Bay captain Vinny Lecavalier, who sat out Monday’s victory over Dallas because of a sore knuckle on his right index finger, should not be out for long and “probably (would) be playing now” if it was the postseason, coach Guy Boucher told the St. Petersburg Times.

Lecavalier was injured when hit by a shot from Panthers defenseman Bryan McCabe in Saturday night’s game at Florida. Lecavalier says he thought at first the knuckle was broken, but X-rays were negative and he now can move his finger, though he still has trouble gripping his stick.

“Definitely, movement is probably the most important thing, and then strength,” he told the newspaper. “Seeing if I have the right strength to play.” Lecavalier added that stick vibration causes pain.

Boucher seemed optimistic his star forward will be back in the lineup quickly, perhaps for Thursday night’s home game against the New York Islanders.